PGP Email

[HairyArsedBloke]

I've got a potential client that wants to be able e-mail me PGP encrypted messages and attachments and me to be able to respond likewise.

I've had a google around and I'm totally confused. I'm thinking that I'd need some sort of plug-in to either exchange or outlook, but there doesn't appear to be much around. Have I got the wrong end of the stick again?

I'm not sure I want this punter anyway. At least not while I'm still in the UK. I'm sure it's not the very naughty end of dodgy money, but it's a bit more than sound tax planning. or

[OwlHoot]

I've got a potential client that wants to be able e-mail me PGP encrypted messages and attachments and me to be able to respond likewise.

I've had a google around and I'm totally confused. I'm thinking that I'd need some sort of plug-in to either exchange or outlook, but there doesn't appear to be much around. Have I got the wrong end of the stick again?

I'm not sure I want this punter anyway. At least not while I'm still in the UK. I'm sure it's not the very naughty end of dodgy money, but it's a bit more than sound tax planning. or

Can't you copy and paste the block of encrypted text into a separate text file, and use a PGP utility to decrypt it outside your mail program?

There must be slicker solutions, such as (probably) a Firefox addon to decrypt a block of highlighted text if you use a web email account like gmail; but the text file method would at least work, once you set up everything.

[TimberWolf]

I'm a bit rusty on this and things have changed in the past few years by the looks of it (PGP used to have a freeware version), but at worse you should be able to communicate using OpenPGP file attachments that you manually attach and open, even if you can't seemlessly integrate OpenPGP with outlook or other email software. Or if you buy PGP it may well do it all for you, as I think it once did. But if he's using a paid-for version of PGP and you the opensource version, you'll have to make sure the encyption schemes you use are available in both. There should be some overlap. I suspect OpenPGP would read anything PGP produces, but PGP map be limited strength, e.g. for America.

One way of communication would involve each of you creating a private and public key pair, then you hand each other your public keys (can be done non-securely). They use your public key to encrypt messages, and you (and only you can) use your private key to decrypt them.

[doodab]

Why not use Outlook's built in ability so handle signed & encrypted mail?

[HairyArsedBloke]

They are not using anything at the moment. It has been talk about Blackberry that has put the idea into their heads that they should look into such things. There is no link (as far as I know) with the parts of the world that Blackberry are having trouble with. However, there could be issues with the level of encryption.

The more I look into this the more I don't want to get involved with it.

[HairyArsedBloke]

Why not use Outlook's built in ability so handle signed & encrypted mail?

Dunno. I have no input on this.

I was simply asked if I was set up to receive and send PGP encrypted messages and files and to keep those message in encrypted form when not in use etc.

[TimberWolf]

They are not using anything at the moment. It has been talk about Blackberry that has put the idea into their heads that they should look into such things. There is no link (as far as I know) with the parts of the world that Blackberry are having trouble with. However, there could be issues with the level of encryption.

The more I look into this the more I don't want to get involved with it.

It's dead easy essentially. Just files.

[TimberWolf]

At worse you'll have to buy PGP.

[TimberWolf]

There is still a freeware version of PGP. Why not download it and have a play? The first thing it'll probably do (after perhaps asking you which encryption scheme to use, for your encryption, for which I guess the default will do) is a create a key pair. It'll then maybe ask you to publish your public key that was generated at the start, which is what the guys you want to communicate with can grab (perhaps from a keystore you uploaded to, also probably a hand-hold process, or emailed). To encrypt messages for their eyes only, you just grab their public key (either ask them for it or grab it off a keystore) and use that to encrypt messages. It's all automatic once you have each others public keys.

The International PGP Home Page

[Tingles]

In my experience if you force the issue and start chasing them to start using PGP they back away sharpish!

Various companies have tried to do this in the past (they had a very high opinion of their data - no one else did!).

In the end no one could be bothered to continue encrypting.


T